Adam Urbanski, president of the Rochester Teachers Association and Angie Rivera, 2025 NYSUT SRP of the Year and president of the Rochester Association of Paraprofessionals, provided the Native Land Acknowledgement as the program began. The invocation was delivered by Dr. Julius Jackson Jr.
Rochester Mayor Malik Evans welcomed delegates to Rochester and talked about the history of the city and some of its most famous inhabitants, including Frederick Douglass and Susan B. Anthony and praised educators for the work they do raising our nation’s next generation. Monroe County Executive Adam Bello talked about the power of organized labor and the wins NYSUT has notched, from fixes to Tier 6 to increases in school funding.
Assemblymember Harry Bronson spoke about the goings-on in Albany, including increased funding for districts and BOCES CTE programs and bell-to-bell cellphone restrictions and praised the advocacy efforts of teachers in pushing for distraction-free learning environments.